Libyan coalition leader keeps focus on secular goals

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TRIPOLI, Libya — A Libyan political alliance trying to hold off Islamist rivals used just one face on its national campaign posters: the image of a former rebel prime minister who once taught strategic planning at the University of Pittsburgh.

‘‘Founded by Mahmoud Jibril’’ read the fliers and posters for the secular-leaning coalition that appeared to have the early edge over the Muslim Brotherhood and its Islamist backers in the vote counting from Saturday’s parliamentary election.

If the liberals hang on, the outcome will probably speak more about Jibril’s skills at populism than a wellspring of support for his relatively unknown political allies.

Jibril — a globe-trotting envoy for the rebel cause after abandoning his adviser post within Moammar Khadafy’s regime — is now in position to become one of Libya’s political point men by serving as a unifier of an array of liberals, secularists, and moderates in the nation’s first open elections in nearly five decades.

Under the umbrella of the alliance, parties’ programs are identical and simple. They center on Libyans’ top worries: restoring security, boosting the oil industry, and keeping Islamic Sharia codes from expanding.

Jibril has managed to strike all chords, making his alliance possibly the first since the Arab Spring to humble the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist allies after surging to power in neighboring Egypt and Tunisia.

‘‘People don’t know parties or personalities,’’ said Shoueb al-Shehebi, an activist in eastern Libya who boycotted the elections. ‘‘They only know Jibril.’’

The Libyan election commission confirmed Monday that Jibril’s secular alliance appears to have dominated Saturday’s parliamentary election. It won two of the three large districts where the count has been completed, with the Brotherhood’s party in second place in all three, according to preliminary official results. A final tally for a 200-seat national assembly is not expected until at least Wednesday.

Gaining control of the Parliament by Jibril’s alliance could bring a government more open to the Western investment and partnerships. But, like any rising political force, Jibril stirs a backlash. Rivals say that Jibril has led a fear-mongering campaign against Islamists and capitalized on Libyans’ fear of another chaotic Egyptian or Tunisian scenario.

‘‘They exploited people’s fear of another Islamist-led state,’’ said Mahmoud al-Shebani, a candidate of the National Parties’ Bloc, which describes itself as a centrist faction. ‘‘They launched an extensive campaign warning that Islamists will turn Libya to Taliban or will rule like (the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah) Khomeini.’’

Jibril, 60, is not on the ballot under rules blocking members of the anti-Khadafy transitional government from running. Instead, he acts as a mix of elder statesman and spokesman for a political coalition of more than 50 parties — some as small as just a handful of people. He launched a private TV network, toured the country and opened new branches in many cities.

In Tripoli’s upscale neighborhood Andalus, the alliance headquarters is located in a four-floor building overlooking the Mediterranean. The headquarters is a beehive, packed by young men and women.

‘‘Where did he get the money from? Look at the army of employees he got,’’ said Shebani.

Curiously, Jibril’s core viewpoints are borrowed largely from his reform plans as a senior Khadafy economic adviser and protege to Khadafy’s son and presumed heir, Seif al-Islam. The ‘‘Libya Tomorrow Project,’’ which Jibril helped author, promoted sell-offs of state companies, more international-friendly policies, reconciliation with opposition movements, and stronger human rights commitments. At the time, it was initially well received by Libyans, but seen by critics as a way for Khadafy’s son to market himself to the West as Libya also tried to repair its global image.